


Thank You

by EstelleDusk



Category: Xiaolin Showdown (Cartoon)
Genre: Chamiko, F/M, Ignores Season 4, Post Season 3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-07
Updated: 2013-10-07
Packaged: 2017-12-28 18:44:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/995251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EstelleDusk/pseuds/EstelleDusk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events with the alternate universes, Chase and Kimiko seek to talk about what happened, knowing that if they didn't, it would handicap them during all their future battles. Once they've come to a decision, they try their best to continue living, despite the fact that there are some regrets. In the end, Chase has to decide if they made the best choice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thank You

Chase Young, Prince of Darkness, wasn't quite sure why he thought it best to join the rest of the Heylin side in trying to destroy the Xiaolin monks right now, since they would likely be confused now that the alternate universes have been combined. He also wasn't sure if everyone remembered the lives they all lead in the alternate universe. He knew he remembered being on the Xiaolin side and training the young dragons. But he supposed that the drastic difference between his two lives is the reason he remembers. He also unfortunately remembered the universe where Omi was missing and Jack ruled the world...

He figured, if the ghost hag and the despicable Hannibal remembered his Xiaolin life, they would have done something by now to test his resolve to being Heylin. Perhaps that was why he agreed to this fight and teleported all of the other villains just outside the Xiaolin Temple? The only thing he was truly sure about at this moment, was that his resolve to being Heylin, was not as firm as the people around him would think, based on him happily fighting the young dragons.

Honestly, Chase considered himself lucky that he was fighting with the Dragon of Wind and not the Dragon of Fire. In the other universe, the Dragon of Wind and himself didn't quite get along due to...unresolved tension regarding another of the dragons-in-training. The Dragon of Earth and the Dragon of Water made quite the good friends for Xiaolin Chase. Clay had even tried to mediate the fights between Chase and Raimundo. As for the Dragon of Fire...

Chase's eyes strayed for the barest second towards Kimiko. He saw her fighting with the hag, the cat woman wannabe, and the fat ninja. She's doing well against them, as he would expect. He grinned a bit when he noticed that she used one of his moves against her opponents. So, she remembered the other universe as well?

Raimundo misunderstood his grin and believed it was simply Chase being cocky as usual. The newly appointed Shoku Warrior roared as he ran at Chase with his Wudai weapon. Chase did what he does best and blocked and redirected the young dragon's attacks. Soon enough, with a little aid in the form of Spicer distracting Raimundo by crashing into him, Chase managed to pin the Dragon of Wind.

The Heylin monk took this chance to look around at the battle around them. The Brazilian monk joined him in looking around as he tried to escape the pin. Chase noticed that quite a few of his temporary allies have slinked away in defeat. Raimundo noticed that his friends, despite overall being okay and holding their own, were getting more exhausted with each passing second. They both noticed that Kimiko seemed to have the most energy left of the Xiaolin monks.

Chase smirked as a plan quickly formed in his head. "My my, it seems our young dragon of fire picked up a few tricks...I wonder where she could have learned Repulse the Monkey?" He added upon seeing her use that particular move.

Kimiko then used yet another move of his. But one he had yet to teach anyone in this universe and had in fact only taught to one person in the other universe. Seeing this made Rai's eyes go wide. "No way...that's one of your moves."

"Indeed it is." Chase replied as a memory of his Xiaolin self teaching the move to Kimiko came to mind. "I remember the day I taught her that. I admit, I didn't expect her to end up so...tired after training."

Rai then managed to throw Chase off of him. As they stood apart and stared at each other, Rai frowned and Chase grinned. The dragon of wind pointed at Chase accusingly. "You remember the alternate universe!"

"Of course," he replied patronizingly. He then noticed that the rest of the Heylin have disappeared after being defeated, and that the other three Xiaolin monks were surrounding him, even as they huffed in exhaustion.

"How much do you remember, Chase?" Rai questioned as he remembered how often they both got into fights in the other universe.

Chase licked his lips and glanced at Kimiko as he replied, "Everything." Kimiko blushed and her eyes widened before they nervously darted around to see if anyone else noticed that Chase had been speaking to her specifically. She repressed a grateful sigh when it seemed everyone was too busy glaring at Chase. She then glared at the Heylin warrior as his next words caused her friends to give her a curious glance. "Kimiko, I do believe we had a previous engagement before I drank the Lao Mang Long Soup. I expect you to keep it. Until next time, young monks."

With a snap of his fingers, he disappeared in a flash of lightning, leaving the dragon of fire to explain to her friends what just happened. Chase returned to his volcanic palace to prepare to Kimiko's visit. First he would have to make sure no one else from the Heylin side was hanging around. The anticipated visit would contain a discussion on...delicate matters.

* * *

With Chase's disappearance, the monks relaxed their fighting stances and collapsed on the ground, taking the moment to catch their breaths. Master Fung walked up to them with Dojo on his shoulders. "You did very well, young monks."

"Yeah! You had Chase running out with his tail between his legs!" Dojo added happily.

"That may be true, but I think we might have bigger problems. You heard Chase as he escaped." Omi said wisely.

"Oh? What did he say, Omi?" Master Fung replied, having not heard the former Xiaolin monk's words.

Raimundo pointed at Kimiko and gave her a slight glare. "Best ask her, I think she knows something we don't." At his words, everyone looked to the female monk curiously. She, on the other hand, grinned nervously and put her index fingers together as her eyes began darting around again.

"Oh, it's nothing as bad as Omi makes it seem. Chase just remembers the alternate universe, that's all. You know, the one where it's mostly the same except that Chase was on our side and Master Guan was on the Heylin side. No big whoop. Really. Maybe we can use that to our advantage. You never know, right?" She shrugged with a giant grin on her face that is obviously fake.

Master Fung narrows his eyes and lowers his voice. "Kimiko..."

"FINE! Fine! In the other world, before Chase brought Omi back home after saving him from Master Guan, he and I decided to meet up to discuss something. But then we found out Omi wasn't our Omi but was really our Omi and then everything happened with the soup and the Xiaolin Showdown. And then Omi combined the universes and we all woke up here. So I never got a chance to discuss that something with Chase that I needed to discuss. And just a moment ago, he mentioned that he expected me to keep my appointment with him. Xiaolin Monk's honor and all that." Her finger drew circles in the dirt as she spoke the full truth.

Omi rose his finger and corrected part of Kimiko's explanation. "Ah! That is mostly true, but Chase's exact words were that you were to keep a previous engagement with him. I do not remember you and Chase even being an, as you say, a belonging.

"Item." Clay immediately corrected the youngest monk. Omi nodded his thanks to the correction before finishing his thought, "therefore, he is going to try to convince you to join the Heylin side. And we must stop him."

"Omi, I do not believe he meant that type of engagement. Now, Kimiko, what exactly were you supposed to discuss with Chase Young?" Master Fung corrected Omi this time and the dragon of water scratched his large yellow head, confused that there were other types of engagement.

Kimiko hung her head. "I can't tell you. We promised we wouldn't mention it to anyone else."

"I see...then, if you can promise me on your word as a monk that you won't be trading any of our secrets to Chase Young, then I suppose I can allow you to go to your meeting."

"I can promise that, Master Fung." Kimiko replied with a light smile as she stood up and formally bowed to him.

"Then I will promise to keep the boys busy while you're gone." He gave her a short bow. When he rose from the bow, he asked one more thing. "When do you leave and how long do you think you'll be gone?"

"I shouldn't be gone for longer than a day and I'll leave in the morning to give Chase a chance to make sure none of the other Heylin people will be snooping. If a Shen Gong Wu activates while I'm gone...well, at least you won't have to fight Chase for it."

* * *

The next day, the first thing Chase Young did upon waking up, was check on his prisoners. Since leaving the Xiaolin Temple, Chase spent the day gathering up all those on the Heylin side that would bother him, and throwing them into the Sphere of Yun.

"And how are we, this fine morning?" He asked his captives. His lip twitched upwards into a smile when he saw Wuya glower at him through the glass.

"Well, we'd be a lot happier if you let us out." She replied.

"Please! Pretty please, CY!" Spicer cried to his evil hero with big wide puppy dog eyes. Katnappe, as far away from Jack as she could get, hastily agreed.

"Ever since I appeared to the young dragons, I haven't had a single day to myself without having one of you charging in here, and acting like you own the place. So, yes, I'll release you, after I've had a day to myself again. I can barely remember the last time I had any peace and quiet. Perhaps I'll do some t'ai chi ch'uan forms?" Chase said as he walked away and went about his morning ritual.

By the time the sun rose a quarter way into the sky, the Heylin Warrior expected a knock on his front door at any minute. He was at the fifth Grasp the Sparrow's Tail in his Yang-style t'ai chi ch'uan routine when he sensed someone on his doorstep. He quickly called up his All Seeing Eye to see who it was. Upon seeing Kimiko standing there, waiting, he snapped his fingers and opened the doors.

Chase watched as the Dragon of Fire proudly walked through the doorway and into the entryway where one of his jungle cats waited for her under his orders. He smiled a bit when he saw her bow to his cat before following him further into the palace. The Heylin monk knew he should probably go on ahead to the dining room, but he wanted to see how she would react to being inside the palace of one of her greatest enemies...in this universe, at least. Would she squirm when she realized Chase wasn't waiting for her? Would she simply just get started on brunch without him?

He needed to know how much the alternate universe affected her. He knew how much it had affected him, but he couldn't let anyone with something against him figure it out. In the other universe, he remembered falling short with his words often around Kimiko since the day she arrived at the temple. He remembered how her worry about Omi had overrode his insistence that he would be fine, and so he went to find his little round-headed friend. And perhaps most importantly, he remembered their budding romance. Today was supposed to be a date between them in the other universe.

Now it would turn into a discussion over brunch about what to do due to their drastically differing memories between the universes. Chase watched as Kimiko was led to the dining room. She looked around the palace in awe, this being the first time she was here on peaceful terms. Upon reaching the dining room and being left alone by the jungle cat that brought her there, she knocked twice. At the lack of answer, she popped open the door and noticed Chase's absence.

She walked into the dining room and stood by the entrance for a few seconds while she rubbed the back of her head. She murmured something about Chase's absence, wondering if he was still asleep, or maybe taking a bath. Then she shrugged and walked around the food laden table. Her face took on a curious look when she noticed some of her favorite foods already sitting on the table. After a minute, she looked at both available chairs and sat in the less ornate one. She glanced around the room once more, wondering again where the host was hiding.

She waited for him, despite her grumbling stomach and inner drooling at the smell of her favorite pie. After 5 minutes of waiting in boredom, she reached for the tamagoyaki.

It's at this point, that Chase chose to quit watching from afar and silently and invisibly teleported himself behind her chair. "It's 4-egg tamagoyaki with bonito flakes." He smirked when Kimiko was startled by his sudden voice and looked towards him.

"Really? I haven't had that since I last went back to Tokyo." Kimiko replied before averting her eyes. Chase walked around the table to his chair and was immediately served his bowl of Lao Mang Long soup by one of his jungle cats.

After a sip of his soup, he reminded the female monk, "Please, don't stop on my account. Eat to your heart's content, Kimiko."

She served herself a little bit of everything she could reach without getting up. After a bite of the tamagoyaki, which tasted just like she remembered, she realized something, "I guess you really do remember everything. I remember when the guys tried to make this and failed. Then...in the other universe, you managed to make it without really trying. And now...I see my favorite foods here. At the very least you remember the little things."

She frowned and lowered her head, unsure how to feel about this. Chase placed his soup on the table and coughed. "You doubted me? When have I ever lied to you in either universe?"

"The first time I confronted you about liking me..." She replied without hesitation. An awkward silence filled the air and both persons looked down at their food. Chase finished his soup, and Kimiko finished her plate of food, before either of them spoke again.

"What are we supposed to do, Chase?"

"I don't know."

"I still like you, although in this universe I only admired how hot you were since you were Heylin."

"And I have always found you attractive, Kimiko."

At the sound of her name, she slyly grinned and looked across the table to her host. "You know, you never called me by my name before yesterday. You usually didn't even address me at all except as a group. Unless you count when I pretended to be Jack."

Chase thought about, and realized she was right. He laughed lightly. "Oh yes, I didn't want to risk your name coming out more...sensual than it should have since we were enemies. I suppose I may have been a bit too wary about that. And of course I couldn't help but smell your perfume that time. It only confirmed what I had thought."

"You mean you didn't really know who I really was until you sniffed at me?"

"I assumed. One second you were there with the other young monks, cheering for Spicer, then you were gone and Spicer was suddenly competent. Although, I'm not entirely sure how you managed to become that nitwit..."

"Hmm...I think that would count under secrets, so I can't tell you. I had to promise Master Fung I wouldn't tell you any secrets to be allowed to come. You know you really made me angry when you left me to explain why you were suddenly talking to me and demanding a meeting. And why'd you have to say 'engagement'? You had Omi convinced you were trying to seduce me into being on the Heylin side." She raised an eyebrow at him, waiting to see what excuse he could come up with for that.

Chase, in turn, grinned. He admitted to himself that, had he stayed long enough, Kimiko would have more than likely pummeled him for his words. But that was why he left when he still had the chance. "That's an idea I'll keep in mind. I'm sure you would make a very beautiful Heylin Empress. Since you're here already, why not dress as such? I'm certain I have something that suits you."

"Chase!" Kimiko whined and harrumphed. "I'll dress as a Heylin Empress if you dress like a Xiaolin monk again. Hah!"

He frowned a bit as he recalled what he had in his closet. "I'm not sure, but I think I still have my blue robes. I could check?"

"Really?" She asked with a growing blush. He didn't mean the robes she thought he did, did he? "If you do, then you have to fix your hair to the way it was too!"

He raised an eyebrow and began to grin again. "Is that a deal?"

"You'd really dress like your good self again just to see me dressed like I was evil?"

"Besides Hannibal, I have most of the Heylin side either vowing to give me a day to myself or locked up in the Sphere of Yun. I have nothing to lose." He shrugged.

Just as Kimiko was about to accept, her phone rang and Wuya's yells for Chase to release her could be heard in the distance. Kimiko answered the phone, seeing that Rai was calling and she had a pretty good idea why he was calling. "Moshimoshi Rai...a new Shen Gong Wu? Well I'm a little busy...you know if you hung up and just went without me, then you could get it before Hannibal does...it does WHAT? ...Okay, okay, I'll see what I can do. Catch ya later."

"Chase Young! You release me this instant! The FengHuang's Embrace must be mine!" Yelled Wuya from whatever room Chase was keeping her.

Chase raised an eyebrow as Kimiko started giving him begging eyes at Wuya's yell. "And just what does this one do, Kimiko?"

"Well besides sharing a name with the move you taught me, it covers the user in a fiery armor and grants the user power over fire. So, Chaaaase, could you just release whoever you have locked up that way if the Heylin side gets it, it won't be Hannibal? And could we maybe put our date on hold until after I get the Wu? Please?" She grinned at him with big puppy dog eyes and clasped hands.

"Hm, I suppose I could...after all, you did admit that we're on a date." He looked at her in such a way that made her blush. "I'll do this on one condition. Whichever side gets it, whether the Heylin or the Xiaolin, determines whether or not you give me a kiss when you come back to finish our discussion. Xiaolin for yes, Heylin for no. Deal?"

"Deal!" Kimiko agreed just a bit too quickly for her liking and blamed it on her memories of Xiaolin Chase.

"Then you'd best use the Golden Tiger Claws and hurry up so that Wuya and the others don't realize you were here." He reminded her. After a quick bow to him, Kimiko then disappeared from his palace.

* * *

Two hours later, the FengHuang's Embrace was spotted and everyone, minus Chase, scrambled to get it first. He casually made his way over to the Shen Gong Wu, not really wanting it due to his earlier deal with Kimiko. But he figured that if the Xiaolin monks saw him going for it, they would fight harder against the rest of the Heylin side there in order to get it first. Just as he placed his hand on the item, it begins to glow.

Looking away from the Shen Gong Wu, he noticed an out of breath Kimiko also with a hand on it. He smirked. Now he knew that she more than likely wanted that promised kiss. Why else would she race all the way over here, when she knew he had no use for Wu except to hoard them like the dragon he was?

"Chase, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown! I wager the Golden Tiger Claws against your...wait, do you even have any Wu?"

"The Sphere of Yun." Chase replied. Raimundo asked Omi how they didn't notice that Shen Gong Wu missing and all Omi can do is shrug. "The game will be Truth or Lie, might as well give you a chance to win." At his words, he heard nearly everyone watching gasp in unison.

"FINE! But the loser has to join the opposite side for a day and following the winner's every command." She glared and growled at him, unbelieving that he could say something so insensitive. So she figured she could at least get something out of him.

"Very well, I look forward to the foot massage you'll give me when we arrive back at my palace." He heard a few people wince loudly and glared around at both the Xiaolin and Heylin sides. He noticed Raimundo looking away and 'innocently' whistling, so he glared harder at him.

"XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN!" Kimiko yelled. The area suddenly filled with red balloons on which the chinese hanzi for Yes, No, and Maybe written on them. Chase and Kimiko appeared on the balloons, whereas all the observers are separated from them and placed in a floating observation deck.

"Gong Yi Tan Pai!" Both parties shouted before glancing over at the people watching.

"Ladies first." Chase mocked with a little bow.

Kimiko pointed dramatically at Chase and quickly spoke in Japanese instead of Chinese. "Chase Young! If you really have no use for Shen Gong Wu, why do you use them?"

For a moment, everyone including Chase is taken aback, having not expected the language shift. Upon seeing the shrugs from the assembled Heylin and Xiaolin and hearing the dragon he tried to eat mention he only understood the names used, Chase believed he understood the true reason this game would be played in Japanese. So they could finish their discussion and speak without worry. "It's been a long time since I spoke Japanese, but as you wish," Chase initially replied in Chinese before switching to Kimiko's native tongue. "I may have no use for them, but I find that a few particular ones come in handy with my more elaborate plans. And your foolish friends never suspect me if I use a Wu to carry out such plans."

He smirked when he saw the observers scratch their heads in confusion. He laughed when Kimiko let loose a tiny growl, she having expected he would have lied, but alas, his balloon stayed aloft. "Did you really expect me to publicly act different now that we've admitted what we did this morning?"

Kimiko's quick one-word reply is one word that a few members of the audience actually understand. But they wondered what type of question Chase could have asked that would make Kimiko lie and say "No" so quickly. Kimiko used the Golden Tiger Claws to quickly reach safety on top of another balloon.. "Did you mean what you said about giving me a chance and making me give you a foot massage?"

"I have to keep up appearances. It doesn't matter what I feel for you if someone catches on before we even get anywhere." Chase replied easily.

"That doesn't answer the question!" Kimiko yelled in Chinese, temporarily forgetting her resolve to use this Showdown as a way of figuring out Chase. Clay frowned a bit at her words and loudly wondered what in the world they were talking about that could get the little lady all riled up like that.

Chase sighed and boredly answered. "No." To his confusion, his balloon popped and he fell onto another balloon. Correcting himself and saying "Yes," the new balloon pops as well and he manages to grab the thick string of another balloon before falling any farther. He noticed Wuya and Jack give him questioning stares and he ignored them and asked his question in Japanese. "What would you have me do about our new relationship because of the mess with the alternate universes?"

"I want you to call me your girlfriend and show me love when no one's looking and sometimes even when someone is looking." She answered with her arms crossed and a smug smile. She could hear Rai exclaim that he knew one of the words, claiming a bunch of tourists to Brazil sometimes had the word tattooed on them somewhere and said it meant love. Her smug smile faded a bit, but she made sure to roll her eyes as she yelled in Chinese towards the Brazilian. "That's only one of the many words for the many different versions of love Japan has, so don't get your panties in a bunch, Rai."

" _Choudo sono_?" He asked with a raised eyebrow and a light smirk.

"Yes, that's all." As soon as the words left her mouth, Kimiko's balloon popped. As she caught herself again, she noticed that there weren't any more balloons beneath either of them. He was on his last lie, and so was she. "And it was my turn, so now I get two questions."

"Very well." He shrugged, he saw no point in arguing, it was true and he honestly couldn't wait to end this Showdown. So the less they argued, the quicker it went.

"If we tried dating, would you try to get me over to the Heylin side?"

Chase was suddenly silent, unsure about the answer. He glanced over at the observers and noticed all of them were reacting to hearing Heylin in the question. The young monks were freaking out. Those on the Heylin side were loudly whispering about what Kimiko could have possibly said about the Heylin side. His almost-dragon-dinner gave both competitors a cautious eye. Chase looked back at Kimiko, seeing her start to worry at his lack of a quick answer. When he finally spoke, his words are low and practically whispered, but everyone hears him and understands since he spoke in Chinese again. "What happens if I refuse to answer a question?"

Dojo, resident keeper of the rules to a Xiaolin Showdowns, immediately answered. "You forfeit the showdown."

Omi, Raimundo, and Clay gasped loudly and wondered what Kimiko could have asked that would make the great Chase Young consider throwing the match and being Xiaolin for a day. Wuya and Jack shared looks of horror upon realizing what could very well happen in the next few seconds. Their Emperor of Darkness...would have to bow to a meer girl. Wuya and Jack cheered for Chase to answer, to just tell the truth and be done with it, claiming they could figure out a way to deal with Kimiko's knowledge of it later on when she was stuck being ordered around by them.

Chase continued to try to decide where to answer or not. When the ruckus of the audience became too loud, he yelled for them to shut up. In Japanese, he told Kimiko one thing, "we'll talk about this later," then he switched back to Chinese, "I forfeit."

In a flash of light, the balloons popped and everything went back to normal, with a few changes. Kimiko now held onto her Golden Tiger Claws, along with Chase's Sphere of Yun and the new FengHuang's Embrace. Chase, now clad in his old blue Xiaolin robes, genuflected before her to show his reverence towards her for the day.

The rest of the Heylin side ran away upon the showdown's end. The rest of the Xiaolin side ran up to Kimiko to congratulate her on figuring out how to make him lose. Raimundo then turned to Chase with a wicked grin. "Well, well, look what the cat's dragged in?" Chase's eyes began to dangerously twitch the more the Dragon of Wind spoke. "Your first order of the day is-"

"No, Rai. I was very specific, he only has to follow what I say." Kimiko chimed in before her friend could say much more. She didn't miss the grateful look her servant for the day sent her, but she didn't comment on it either.

"What? And just what are you gonna have him do? Paint your toenails? You might as well humiliate him a bit since he was planning to do the same to you." Rai countered.

Kimiko shook her head. "Actually, the most I was going to order him to do, was not run away while we finish our discussion from earlier. Or did you forget you were supposed to leave me alone today? Now, I want you guys to start heading back to the temple and warn Master Fung about Chase coming. I'll arrive in about a half hour with him using the Golden Tiger Claws, and I'd like it if there was already a room set aside for us to talk in without interruption."

After a bit more arguing , Kimiko finally managed to get her friends to go back to the temple and leave herself and Chase alone. Once gone, Kimiko asked Chase to stop kneeling and just walk next to her. She said they would spend the half hour walking with light discussion. Inwardly, Chase agreed to it being a good idea to not stay in the same place for too long. One never knew where Hannibal could be hiding.

* * *

Ten minutes later of walking and no talking, Kimiko used the Golden Tiger Claws to bring them somewhere more private so they could speak freely. A cave on a mountain nearby the Xiaolin Temple that she found by accident one day. Upon arriving to the cave and hearing that it was safe, Chase grabbed the Dragon of Fire around her waist and pulled her close. He murmured against her ear, "I do believe you owe me a kiss, little one."

She blushed and tried to get out of his strong grip. "First you have to answer that last question I asked you. THEN I will kiss you."

He frowned at that, but knew his stubborn fire dragon wouldn't relent until he did. He released her just long enough to move and sit by the wall of the cave. When she joined him, he pulled her into his lap and rested his head against hers. "First, you must understand that it is a difficult question. In this universe we are on different sides, that's true. But would I try to seduce you into becoming Heylin? The answer seems like it should be 'yes, of course.' But it's not that simple."

"Okay..." She replied nervously.

"You have to choose the Heylin side or else you would never truly be evil. And though fire is destructive and passionate, it's never truly evil, simply neutral. That's how things work. And perhaps most importantly, I can never truly be Xiaolin again, no matter how much you have me play pretend for you. So our choices would be either for you to join me, or for us to break this before it gets any further."

"Why does it have to be like that? You can be good again, I know you can."

"You're right, I can, but would you really be able to shoulder the consequences of that?"

"How can there be consequences to being good?!"

Chase's eyes grew dark and narrowed in barely restrained hate as he thought about his answer before speaking. "You remember how in the other universe, the one where I never drank the soup, Guan did instead. Guan has much less restraint there than I do here. Despite extensively training each and every one of you, he nearly killed you and your friends more times than I care to remember. What that tells me, is that if I ever switch sides, the balance between the Heylin and the Xiaolin would be severely uprooted. Meaning a drastic change would have to occur. I would have to risk your life. I can't do that."

"Chase...how do you know this?"

"I may not have told the whole truth earlier about why I don't use Shen Gong Wu..." Chase trailed off as he looked towards the mouth of the cave and into the distance.

"What does that have to do with this?" Kimiko asked warily. Her answer came in the form of Chase reaching into his robes and pulling out a specific Shen Gong Wu that they had thought was lost forever. The Hoduku Mouse. "How do you have that?" She asked before suddenly remembering what the Wu was supposed to do. Correct mistakes.

"Omi's mishap with the Sands of Time recently was not the first time I've seen the alternate universes. I've had this particular one for a long time and it has unfortunately become a crutch. You are the first person to know I have it, and you will tell no one." He said without emotion before putting it back where he had it hidden. "Though the choice for what to do is yours, I can and will use the mouse should the future that happens, turn out to be something I don't approve of."

"If you've used it so much, then why don't we remember anything different?"

"Because unlike the Sands of Time, there are not two versions of the user just within reach of each other, just waiting for a temporal spatial paradox to happen. And, only the user remembers. With this mouse, I've actually lived much longer than the 1500 years history claims."

Silence. Chase wondered if he shouldn't have told her about the mouse, but he had used it enough times to know that the futures where he didn't tell her the whole truth upfront were just as bad as the universes she remembered from Omi's messing around. Kimiko simply tried to understand everything Chase told her. She didn't think it was fair for the fate of the world to rest on her shoulders in this way. She just wanted...she just wanted a happy ending. That's when she had an idea. "Chase...what if we stayed on opposite sides, but we dated secretly?"

He blinked, she had never said that answer before in all the futures he had lived. Then he smiled at her, happy that she may have figured something out. "I think that would work. However, if we hide, we must be very careful. No one can find out. If Hannibal found out..."

"It would be the doom of us all, I understand. I promise to be careful." Kimiko gently placed a hand on his cheek before finally giving him the kiss she owed him. Later on, they went down to the Xiaolin Temple and holed themselves up in one of the small tea rooms. For the rest of day, going into tomorrow afternoon, anyone that passed by the room would only hear two people speaking rapid Japanese and occasionally laughing.

* * *

It's been months since Chase and Kimiko started dating secretly. And someone had finally found out. A few someones. Chase sat in his throne at his palace and kept thinking about how he could fix this mess. That's when the stupid bean showed himself in the throne room.

"Well, well, if it isn't Chase Young. Ya know what I heard? I heard ya had yerself a lil' crush on a certain lil' spitfire."

Chase boredly stared at the bean as the gears in his head started coming up with a plan. He replied with a yawn. "Then obviously my plan is working."

When Hannibal frowned in confusion, Chase couldn't resist smirking. "Oh? You didn't think I would actually lower myself like that. Although you weren't supposed to hear anything about the Dragon of Fire and myself until after I managed to turn her. I trust you haven't done anything stupid that would force me to bring my plan up?"

"Uhh, like what?"

"You haven't teased the Xiaolin Monks with that bit of knowledge, have you?" Chase made sure to glare at the bean.

"Maybe?"

Chase heavily groaned and facepalmed. "Idiot, now I have to move my plan up and I'm not even sure if she'll accept the soup at this time. Leave me, I need to prepare for tonight." He stood from his seat and left for his kitchen. He had to prepare some Lao Mang Long soup for Kimiko.

* * *

At midnight, Chase waited in a clearing not far from the cave Kimiko and he had sought privacy in only months ago. On a small boulder rested a bowl of Lao Mang Long soup. He could sense Hannibal hiding nearby and knew he had to keep up the act. Kimiko would be arriving soon for their rendezvous and he would have to turn up the charm, subtly let her know they had an audience. Today, she would finally make her choice. Either she joined the Heylin side, or from this point on they were enemies and would have to forget the past few months.

He could feel the Hoduku Mouse in his right sleeve. He always had it on him, he couldn't trust leaving it anywhere and he never knew when he would need it. So he had taken up the habit of holding his arms together behind his back. Left on top of right. That way, if he needed to use it, he would simply have to murmur it's name. During the past months, Kimiko had begun to notice little signs that told her when he had just used the Shen Gong Wu, and would sometimes, once in private, asked what he had changed. Sometimes he answered, sometimes he didn't. Sometimes she would have to use the Mind Reader Conch to figure it out. She always had her PDA with her, and it almost always had the Eye of Dashi and the Mind Reader Conch inside it.

When Kimiko finally arrived at the clearing, she immediately noticed the soup and how straight-faced Chase was acting. When he started charming her with sweet words and saying how they had to hurry, she realized something was wrong. He said that it was finally time to make her choice, that both the forces of the Heylin and the Xiaolin were plotting to stop their relationship as they spoke. He held out his right hand and offered her the soup.

Kimiko bit her lip, she could see what he was doing. She knew where he kept the Hoduku Mouse. He was offering an escape, a do-over. She could tell they had an audience and she assumed it was Hannibal, so they couldn't mention the mouse. She would just have to reach for the soup in his hand and instead place her hand on his arm and murmur the name of the Wu. She shook her head.

"No? Are you sure, Kimiko? We could live forever in my palace, you wouldn't have to worry about whatever misjudged justice the other monks would unleash upon you." Chase frowned, he knew she knew his silent offer. He had been sure she would go for it. But refusing both? Choosing to break off their relationship and keep all the memories and time spent? He hadn't expected that.

"No, that's not what I mean, Chase. I choose the Heylin side, I want to be with you, but I don't want the soup right now." Kimiko quickly explained.

"Why?" Now he was even more confused. Drinking the soup was the easiest way to join the Heylin side and getting rid of any guilt of leaving the Xiaolin side.

She blushed. "Well...I'm only 18 right now, and I look really young for my age since I'm so short. I'd like to...develop a bit more before I stop aging."

Chase laughed at that. "Very well, although I have no problem with how you look now. Come, let us return to my palace."

* * *

Two years after that, Kimiko finally drank the soup. A few months later, Clay joined Raimundo and Omi as a Shoku Warrior. A few days later, Clay died and the monks mourned, including Kimiko despite how much she swore her tears weren't for her former friend. Years would pass before someone finally made Xiaolin Dragon. Many more years would pass before Omi joined Raimundo as a Dragon instead of a Dragon Apprentice. Both times, Kimiko and Chase had appeared to give their version of congratulations in the form of a fight.

100 years later, and Raimundo and Kimiko would fight to the death. There was too much on the line for anything less. And later that night, Chase tried not to show how worried he had become near the end of that fight. He almost lost her. Chase would continue to use the Hoduku Mouse for little mistakes here and there, but as he noticed how often his wife cried, he realized there was a large mistake he would have to fix, but he didn't want to. Out of all the futures with Kimiko he had to fix, this was the only one where he was happy and had her by his side, so he was loathe to change it.

But he knew he would have to, before he was forced to watch her destroy herself. It took another 200 years before he had to admit defeat in his resolve. Guan was long dead. As was Dojo. From Kimiko's old life, only Omi remained, and they had both been fighting for days now, neither one allowing their opponent to win despite how tired they both were.

Finally, he stopped their fight and gave his wife a long look as she struggled to rise to her feet. He noticed Omi having the same trouble some distance away. Chase knelt next to Kimiko and gave her a long sorrowful kiss. When the kiss broke, he saw the question in her eyes. He kept his words low as he answered her question in his own way whilst reaching into his sleeve and pulling out a Shen Gong Wu. "At least we never had children. It would kill me to know I stopped them from existing. Hoduku Mouse!"

* * *

With a gasp, Chase blinked and looked around. He was back in the clearing where Kimiko made the choice to join the Heylin side. He noticed her arriving, heard her say his name in the same questioning tone she did all those years ago. He turned his back on her and folded his arms behind her back, right arm on top of left. He knew she had begun to realize the signs of him having used the mouse. He knew she would realize what he was doing and what had happened.

"It has come to my attention that those who would do us harm, have found out about us, or at the very least, suspect something. It has come time for you to make your choice. But before you do, know that I know you would make a wonderful Heylin Empress."

Kimiko gasped when she realized what his words meant in addition to how he was acting. He had just come back from a future where she drank the soup. She remember how on the first day they started dating, he swore to use the mouse if something in the future turned out to be something he didn't approve of, and if it was a future where she drank the soup...she wondered what could have happened. She also realized they had an audience. The meaning of his words were clear to her, but he would have been more direct if no one was listening in.

Taking a deep breath, Kimiko gave her beloved her answer, "And if I choose not to?"

"Then I will show no mercy on the battlefield next we meet."

"Then this is good bye, Chase. Thanks for memories." Kimiko replied sadly before walking away. Chase refused to turn around and see her walk away. He only had one thought as he gathered the soup and returned to his lair.

_No, little one, thank you._


End file.
